1. The Knack was an American new wave/power pop band from Detroit, Michigan, based in Los Angeles. They rose to fame with their first single, "My Sharona", which was an international hit in 1979. The power pop of "My Sharona", coupled with the band's retro 60s look, earned the band comparisons to The Beatles (though the band members themselves viewed the 'New Beatles' label as tongue-in-cheek). Many music critics hated disco, which dominated the music industry at the time, and were, at best, coolly receptive to other developing trends like punk, electronica, and heavy metal.
The Knack's hard rock influences earned them some critical credibility and massive commercial success with their debut album, 1979's 'Get The Knack'. The band had formed in May 1978, known at first as '20/20', and, after shopping their demo tape to various record labels without success, they began playing the local club circuit. Quickly gaining a following as musicians such as Tom Petty and Bruce Springsteen praised them, they finally signed with Capitol Records in January 1979. Reaching #1 on the Billboard 200 chart, 'Get The Knack' has earned praise for decades, with Kurt Cobain in particular claiming it as one of his top fifty albums of all time.
While fans praised their new wave and power pop fueled sound, many critics still found issues with the group's in-your-face image in their lyrics, with accusations of misogyny popping up. After subsequent releases, the social backlash against the Knack (similar to that of The Monkees a generation earlier) was strong. Dave Marsh of 'Rolling Stone' in particular wrote, "In Fieger's lyrics, women are literally commodities whose chief purpose is to be brutalized." A 'Knuke the Knack' campaign emerged based on that as well as the perceived corporate-based over-hype. With their second album, '...But the Little Girls Understand', getting less commercial success (doing well, but not up to expectations), the band broke up mid-tour on New Year’s Day 1982. Besides the turmoil around the group, they also faced near total burnout among themselves, particularly given Fieger's drugs-heavy lifestyle, and the band members reportedly hadn't the energy to do much of anything after their third album, 'Round Trip', came out.
They re-united sporadically several years later and released a new album on January 16, 1991, titled 'Serious Fun'. A comeback accompanied by a public reunion and tour, it failed to reach either commercial or critical success but resulted in the hit single "Rocket O' Love", which reached #9 in Billboard's Mainstream Rock Chart. They continued playing through the 90s and into the new millennium, with 2003's 'Re-Zoom' (or 'Zoom') being their last studio album. Commercial airplay mostly eluded the group over the 90s, but a generation of new fans who loved 80s-era new wave music provided a devoted cult following. Lead singer and main songwriter Doug Fieger was diagnosed with cancer in 2005. Fieger battled the disease until his death on Valentine's Day 2010.
Fieger, a native of Detroit, Michigan, had previously played in a country rock band called Sky. Of the three other original members of the Knack (Berton Averre - Guitar, Prescott Niles - Bass, and Bruce Gary - Drums), Averre and Niles remained with the group as it ended. Gary died of non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2006. Several drummers had played for the group over the years, including Billy Ward (Serious Fun album), Terry Bozzio (Zoom album), and David Henderson as 'Holmes Jones' (Normal as the Next Guy and Live at the Rock N Roll Funhouse albums). Pat Torpey (Mr. Big) played the drums for the group right before they ended.
There are other artists with the same name:
2. The Knack was a short-lived 1960s American psych/garage band from Los Angeles, CA. They recorded for Capitol Records. Formed in 1965, the band comprising Mike Chain (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Dink Kaplan (lead guitar, backing vocals), Larry Gould (bass, backing vocals) and Pug Baker (drums), formally débuted at The Ice House in October 1966 and released four singles in total, of which Time Waits For No One was the best-seller. They toured throughout the U.S. but worked most frequently in Hollywood.
3. The Knack was a mid-60's British band originally known as The Londoners, a moniker they adopted whilst paying their beat group dues in the clubs of Germany in the early 60s. Upon returning to the UK in 1965 and changing their name to the rather hipper The Knack (after the recently released Richard Lester film), they recorded half a dozen singles for Decca and Piccadilly including the mod R&B ravers "She Ain't No Good", "Time Time Time" and "Stop!". Their final single, "(Man From The) Marriage Guidance And Advice Bureau", featured a more mature acoustic sound, which nodded towards both The Kinks and the impending psychedelic explosion. They broke up in 1967 and leader Paul Gurvitz formed the band The Gun.
Mr Handleman
The Knack Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You can′t leave a woman like a chippy alone
She's plenty pretty like a woman in prime
No you won′t need a waterbed to have a good time
Mr. handleman mr. handleman
Take my wife home
Mr. handleman mr. handleman mr. handleman
La señora is a sight for sore eyes
Half an hour in a paradise
You're not the first and you will never come last
But the natives are restless so you better grab fast
The Knack's song "Mr Handleman" is a satirical take on the phenomenon of cheating in relationships. The song's protagonist is asking Mr Handleman to take his wife home because he cannot "leave a woman like a chippy alone." He goes on to describe his wife as "plenty pretty like a woman in prime" and assures Mr Handleman that "you won't need a waterbed to have a good time." The chorus repeatedly asks Mr Handleman to take the wife home, emphasizing the singer's desperation to get rid of her.
The second verse introduces the idea of cheating being a paradise, with the wife being a "sight for sore eyes" and Mr Handleman getting "half an hour in a paradise." The singer also acknowledges that Mr Handleman is not the first to cheat with his wife and won't be the last - implying that she is a known adulterer. The final line "the natives are restless so you better grab fast" seems to be a warning to Mr Handleman to act quickly before someone else gets to his wife.
Overall, the song uses humor and sarcasm to criticize infidelity and the objectification of women. The singer views his wife as a possession to be passed off to someone else, and Mr Handleman as a tool to make that happen. The song's upbeat tempo and catchy chorus serve to mask the dark subtext and give the impression of a light-hearted party song.
Line by Line Meaning
Come mr. handleman take my wife home
Requesting Mr. Handleman to accompany the singer's wife home.
You can′t leave a woman like a chippy alone
A woman as attractive as the singer's wife should not be left alone.
She's plenty pretty like a woman in prime
The singer's wife is very beautiful and in her prime.
No you won′t need a waterbed to have a good time
The singer is suggesting that Mr. Handleman will not require a waterbed to have fun with his wife.
Mr. handleman mr. handleman
Repeating the name of the person being addressed to get their attention.
Take my wife home
Reiterating the request for Mr. Handleman to take the singer's wife home.
La señora is a sight for sore eyes
The singer's wife is extremely beautiful and attractive.
Half an hour in a paradise
Suggesting that spending time with the singer's wife is like being in paradise for half an hour.
You're not the first and you will never come last
Implying that Mr. Handleman is not the first person to spend time with the singer's wife and will not be the last.
But the natives are restless so you better grab fast
The people around the singer's wife are becoming restless and aggressive, so Mr. Handleman should take her home quickly.
Writer(s): Berton Averre, Doug Fieger
Contributed by Sebastian A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.